Arsene Wenger’s contract situation with Arsenal has taken over the club

It’s the greatest show on Earth.

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This year, they’ve even added an air show, with rival ‘Wenger In’ and ‘Wenger Out’ planes circling the skies above West Bromwich.

As the hours tick down towards the inevitable announcement that Wenger has selflessly decided it is in the best interests of Arsenal that he signs a new £16million deal, they will hopefully upgrade this spectacle.

Perhaps a re-enactment of a First World War dogfight over the Emirates, with the big fella from Arsenal Fan TV as Biggles, caught in the crosshairs of Stewart Robson, the dastardly Red Baron?

Those of us who work on the sports pages of newspapers love nothing more than men shouting at one another. And for the next ten days, men shouting at each other is pretty much all we’ve got.

Another plane flew over supporting Arsene Wenger and asking him to stay at the club

And the biggest thrill of all will come when Arsenal’s board attempt to justify the new contract with the caveat that Wenger has promised to change — a line they’ve been secretly peddling for weeks.

Hand him a new contract out of dewy-eyed sentimentality or Utopian dreaming if you like, but please don’t pretend he’ll change.

After 21 years, the one thing we know for certain about this bloke is that he is neither willing nor able to do that.

Changing, adapting, moving with the times, is simply not what Wenger does.

He is a pig-headed ideologue to the core of his being.

Five years ago, there was some surprise when Wenger apparently relented to outside pressure and appointed his former defender Steve Bould to his first-team coaching staff. Yet whatever Bould is actually allowed to do all week, it does not extend to teaching Arsenal’s players how to effectively defend corners — as was twice exposed by West Brom during Saturday’s 3-1 defeat.

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Arsene Wenger protest goes ahead as two banners fly over the Hawthorns

Other apparent changes in emphasis, such as the signing of a new centre-back and central midfielder as part of a £90million overhaul last summer, were rendered pointless when it became apparent that Granit Xhaka can’t tackle and Shkodran Mustafi can’t head a ball.

Individual players have stopped progressing under Wenger as they once did.

Two or three years ago, the core of the England team was being built around young Arsenal players.

Arsenal fans are split on whether Arsene Wenger should stay or leave the club

Arsenal fans march in protest before match of manager Arsene Wenger

Wenger has fostered a culture of comfiness and complacency, of six-pack selfies to celebrate unremarkable wins and a limp acceptance of defeat.

Saturday afternoon was the moment even the most blindly loyal could see Arsenal are staring at Thursday night Europa League football.

And so that was the moment — after six defeats in their last seven matches against top-flight opposition and 21 goals conceded in the process — when Wenger announced with a coy grin that his future had been decided.

Not that he was going to tell anyone, except for an old rugby-coaching chum, who then inadvertently spilled the beans.

How wonderfully that must have gone down among the now-dominant Wenger Outers.

Not only is Arsene staying but we get to find out via the dark lord of anti-football, Tony f****** Pulis.

STILL whining about fixture congestion, kick-off times and the Prem ‘not giving a s***’ about English clubs in Europe. Apart from staging fixtures between two European legs at 8am on Monday there’s little more they can do. You’re managing one of the most expensive squads on the planet. Use it, man.

CALLING out Boro players for getting his mate Aitor Karanka sacked. Middlesbrough are going down because they never score goals and Karanka is a more negative tactician even than Mourinho. This one wasn’t the players’ fault.

CLAIMING those who criticise Paul Pogba are motivated by envy of his wage packet.This one isn’t just nonsense, it’s sick. It’s like waving the £8million pay-off you got after leading Chelsea to 16th, into the face of every hard-working man struggling to afford his season ticket and Sky subs.Even by Mourinho’s standards of charmlessness, this was low.

Still at least Mourinho says he is more ‘discreet, calm and mature’ than before.